ANNUAL REPORTS. GA Statistical Reporting: Clerks of Session, please go to our website www.uovpresby.org and find all the information as well as links to the GA statistical report and clerk’s questionnaire under Annual Reports. Plan to submit your two electronic General Assembly reports by January 31, 2017 (or by February 15that the latest; however, the longer you wait, the slower the process will be when you actually file the reports online).

There are four reports to be returned to the Presbytery Office. You can e-mail the completed reports to uovp@uovpresby.org. If you wish to file paper copies, please return them to the Rev. Dr. Frank Lewis, our Stated Clerk, at the presbytery meeting on Saturday, January 28, 2017, at Bellaire Presbyterian Church, Bellaire, OH, or by mail (the address is on the forms).

POST-CHRISTMAS QUESTIONS,by Michael Jinkins, President of Louisville Presbyterian Theological Seminary. Why are Christmas stories such as Frank Capra's movie It's a Wonderful Life and Charles Dickens' A Christmas Carol, so popular while American culture seems so often to contradict their messages? We are horrified by the prospect of a vulgar, self-serving and brutal Pottersville and are repelled by the unreformed Ebenezer Scrooge saying that the struggling poor and sick should die and decrease the surplus population. Yet, a sizable proportion of the American population support the policies that advance the very agendas they seem to loathe when they see them dramatized. Are the Christmas stories merely sentimental, idealistic and naive? This seems to be the cynical take on things. The cynic will tell us that a single human life can't prevent a town from going bad; a person can't really be changed, converted or transformed from selfish to selfless. Or do these Christmas stories exemplify goodness? A Presbyterian pastor I knew and respected greatly, the late David Pittenger, once called into question the criticism someone had of "do-gooders." David asked, "Would you as a Christian prefer 'do-badders?'" David was as sophisticated an ethical thinker as you'll meet. He understood how ideology and high idealism can get in the way of making wise decisions. He was a student of Reinhold Niebuhr, and a proponent of the ethics of "Christian Realism." But he was also aware that if our practical decisions do not reflect the substance of our faith, we aren't really acting as disciples of Jesus Christ. The Bible has a name for us when our actions don't match our values: hypocrites. Christmas is in the rear-view mirror again. Capra and Dickens are safely put away for another year. But I just can't quite forget the question that haunted my holidays: Why don't we live up to the stories we tell? Visit Michael's blog, Thinking Out Loud.

PRESBYTERIAN PEACEand Justice Newsletter January, 2017, “Confronting Chaos & Forging Community” control+click here. This can also be found on our website. Click on the Mission sidebar, then Peacemaking.

IN 2017, as part of the 300th anniversary of the Synod of the Trinity, we would like to share some of these stories of life and hope in a feature we are calling “Revealing Hope.” And we need YOU to help make that possible. We are looking to discover these stories through you — stories of the person who has maintained faith and trust while overcoming great obstacles, stories of the person who has consistently seen life’s cup as being half full (at least!) on account of faith, stories of the person who has resisted a downward spiral to turn and live instead with hope in the light … the possibilities go on. These are the stories we are searching to tell through various media, ones that will be shared throughout our region to help provide hope and inspiration to others. We have already put together two "Revealing Hope" stories: DAVID BAILEY - The son of the late Rev. Dr. Kenneth Bailey, David was a singer and songwriter who didn't let a terminal brain tumor slow him down. View his story here. HEIDI BRACKEN - Heidi overcame years of abuse and suicidal tendencies to turn her life around, finding a shining light in a friend that she now calls "mom." View her story here. If you have an idea for a subject, email Communications Coordinator Mike Givler here with the details.

MASS INCARCERATION/RESTORATIVE JUSTICE: Understanding and Response ~ Louisville Seminary Black Church Studies Consultation. When: Friday, February 24, 2017, at 8:00 AM EST to Saturday, February 25, 2017, at 4:30 PM EST Add to Calendar. Where: LPTS and Quinn Chapel AME Church,1044 Alta Vista Road, Louisville, KY 40205. Driving Directions. Please join us for "Mass Incarceration/Restorative Justice: Understanding and Response," Louisville Seminary's 2017 Black Church Studies Consultation. Scholars, faith leaders and social justice advocates will address the complexities of the issues of mass incarceration and how this can be incorporated into the worship and ethical life of the church. Workshops from practitioners and plenary session leaders will provide real-life working models and tools that can help churches begin to develop ministries to respond to these issues. Keynote sessions include: In Their Own Voices: Experiences of Mass Incarceration, From Those Who Work with Families of Incarcerated Persons, Release, Reentry and Redemption: The Church and Community's Response and Responsibility, Healing Communities: A Framework for Congregations in their Ministry to Families Affected by Incarceration. Get more information.Register Now!Registration closes February 20.

Free Webinar Explores Vacation Bible School. Jan. 19, learn more about planning and organizing a successful vacation Bible school. Lisa Brown will lead the hour-long discussion at 12:00 p.m. ET. Her book, The Best Do-It-Yourself VBS Workbook Ever, will be published early this year. The event is part of the Christian Education NETworking Series offered through Continuing Education. If you’re unable to join us for the live webinar, a recording will be available on the Seminary’s website after the event. Learn more.

Summit Against Racism at PTS. The Seminary's Metro-Urban Institute welcomes the Summit Against Racism Jan. 21. This all-day event will explore race and reconciliation in our modern society. The conference will provide a forum for discussion about the current state of race relations in the U.S., what we have learned so far, and pathways to deeper understanding, healing, and social action. Register online.

Sabbath as Resistance: An Ethic of Faithful Defiance. Despite the Christian injunction to love our neighbors as ourselves, self-care—a form of self-love that is crucial for sustaining personal and professional wellbeing—continues to be a struggle for many in ministry and the helping professions. We’ll address this topic Jan. 27 beginning at 9:30 a.m. when Michelle Snyder and Ayana Teeter present “Sabbath as Resistance: An Ethic of Faithful Defiance.” Continuing education units are available for licensed social workers, marriage and family therapists, and professional counselors. This event is co-sponsored with Pittsburgh Pastoral Institute and underwritten by Desert Ministries Inc. Learn more.

FELLOWSHIP COMMUNITY NATIONAL GATHERINGwill be February 21-23, 2017, at First Presbyterian Church, Lakeland, FL. Registration is OPEN!What Is Success For Your Church? I once asked this of an old-school church leader, who promptly spluttered and spat a mouthful of tea back into his cup and saucer. (I'm from England, and people drink a lot of tea over there. That's plenty of opportunity for tea splattering.) If we're honest, though, we can sort of understand that pastor. Asking about church success can make us feel a bit televangelist and slightly unclean. But it's a vital question....

BIG TENT.Save the date for Big Tent 2017! The Presbyterian Church (U.S.A)’s Big Tent biennial gathering will be held on the campus of Washington University in St. Louis, Missouri, July 6–8, 2017. Mark your calendar and plan to join in three days of worship, workshops and the opportunity to engage and connect with other Presbyterians. Learn more.

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